Common Sense Media Review
By Carrie R. Wheadon
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Tragic Sabriel prequel slow to start but worth the wait.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 12+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
What's the Story?
Clariel didn't ask to move to the city of Belisaere. She was perfectly happy living in a small town with her family. She escaped to the woods often to hunt and lead as solitary a life as possible. But her mother, a master goldsmith and a cousin to the king, decided it was time to move her family up in the world. Now Clariel finds herself stuck in a crowded city, dressed up in fancy robes, and expected to learn how to serve some weird drink they call tea. And every afternoon she's sent to learn more about magic with the town's Charter Mage, Magister Kargrin. Kargrin isn't surprised that Clariel knows so little about Charter Magic. In the city it's completely out of fashion. But he's surprised to find Clariel so full of raw magical power. A power that any Free Magic creature would like to control and possess. Knowing how much Clariel wants to escape the city, Kargrin offers her the money to do it, in exchange for helping him find a Free Magic creature corrupting the city. Sure enough, the creature is lured by Clariel's raw power. Before it's captured, Clariel comes too close to the creature, and the temptation of Free Magic is difficult to ignore.
Is It Any Good?
Fans of the Abhorsen trilogy have been waiting a long time for CLARIEL, with high expectations; Garth Nix is slow to meet them but does come around in the end. Stick with it. If you're getting impatient for glimpses of the Abhorsen's house or a visit with Mogget the sly, sardonic cat, skim the bits about Clariel in school or the squabbling with her parents.
Clariel is slowest when Nix gets caught up in descriptions of the palace, the Charter Mage's house, and the city. The tension of the story is very brief in the first half but jarring with a truly gnarly Free Magic creature on the loose. Then it builds very diligently in the second half as Clariel's difficult choices emerge. It's a long fuse to a very explosive, tragic, and satisfying ending.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about Clariel and other tragic characters. Were you rooting for Clariel throughout the book? At what point in her decision-making did she go from possible hero to a tragic figure? Is there any going back for her?
What other tragic characters in literature can you think of? Who is your favorite and why?
Have you read Sabriel and the rest of the Abhorsen trilogy? If not, will you pick it up after reading Clariel?
Book Details
- Author :
- Genre : Fantasy
- Topics : Fantasy ( Magic ) , Adventures , Animals
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Harper
- Publication date : October 14, 2014
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 12 - 17
- Number of pages : 400
- Available on : Nook, Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
- Last updated : September 30, 2025
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